A Little Problem
by XAkatcutiesX
Summary: Slight change in story, please read details in first chapter. The mission should have been an easy one, at least that's what Itachi thinks. Despite all its initial flaws, the mission had been going well. Until Hidan had messed everything up. Now Itachi, Kisame, and Sasori are stuck taking care of three S-ranked criminals-turned-children.
1. Chapter 1

**NOTE: I've rewritten this (and the next chapter also), only changing the fact that Sasori isn't going to be a child because I've already written a fic with him as a kid, and I feel like I'm repeating myself x) It won't change the plot much, he's just going to have to suffer with Itachi and Kisame.**

The mission should have been an easy one, at least that's what Itachi thinks. The whole Akatsuki, save Pein, Konan and Zetsu, had been sent out to take over a small village. One of their clients had paid them an unusually large sum of money, and had promised to spread the word about the Akatsuki's work to other possible clienteles. The mission, despite all its initial flaws, _had_ been going well. Until Hidan had fucked everything up.

They'd had a decent plan: Itachi and Kisame would sneak into the village and do some silent assassination on its few shinobi; Deidara and Sasori, when given the word, would attack the village as a whole, Deidara with his clay bombs dropping in previously decided areas, and Sasori with his 100 puppet technique. Kakuzu and Hidan would remain along the outskirts of town, taking down anyone trying to escape and call for backup. That's where Hidan had ruined everything.

Angry that he wasn't getting enough action (and sacrifices), seeing as everyone else was doing a good job of not letting the villagers get too far, the silver-haired nin had run straight into the village, despite Kakuzu's yelling to stay put.

Too busy reveling at the thought of all the sacrifices he'd be able to give his dear lord Jashin, Hidan hadn't noticed Sasori nearing ahead of him, and had knocked into the puppet. This, in turn, caused Sasori to have a slip of the hand, and as the two members tried to detangle themselves from one another, they watched as one of Sasori's flying puppets crashed right into Deidara's giant bird. The blond hadn't known what hit him, and together he and his bird plummeted to the ground, crash-landing right on top of Hidan and Sasori.

Itachi watched this all happen with a sigh, but he couldn't worry about it for long, as a group of shinobi were coming straight for him and his partner Kisame. He'd deal with it later.

Meanwhile, Kakuzu jumped down from a tree, landing in front of his three comrades sprawled out on the ground. "Damn it, Hidan, this is why you need to follow our plans!"

The Jashinist groaned, tugging his leg out from underneath the giant bird's wing. "Eh, just shut up, Kakuzu! I told you guys you should've let me go in to be one of the first to take down the shinobi."

"And let you make a big scene?" the miser growled, crossing his arms.

"Deidara, get off of me!" Sasori snapped, taking in the damage. Hiruko was completely destroyed, the shield on top of it and been totally caved in thanks to the weight of Deidara's big ass bird. The blond groaned in pain as he pushed himself up off the puppet master. With a seal, his bird disappeared and he dusted himself off. "Hiruko's completely useless." Sasori almost pouted as he pulled a scroll from his pocket, sealing the container puppet away until he could fix it. "And it's all thanks to _you_!"

Hidan blinked in surprise as Sasori automatically put him to blame. "Me? The hell did I do? It was Deidara's ugly bird that broke your damn puppet."

Deidara immediately took offense to his art being called ugly, and growled. "It only fell because _someone_ crashed their puppet into it, hm!" He glared at Sasori, who scoffed in return.

"That wasn't my fault, brat! This idiot's the one who couldn't stay where he was told."

"How do you expect me to offer sacrifices to Lord Jashin if I can't even-"

"Enough!" Kakuzu yelled, silencing everyone. "Someone's coming."

The four Akatsuki jumped into defense mode, all staring toward a bush, which had started rustling. "Who's there? Hm!"

To their surprise, a frail old lady stepped out of the bush, waving a cane in front of her. "You trouble-makers! Destroying the village and such!" The members immediately relaxed, seeing no threat from a little old lady.

"Let's just kill her and meet up with Itachi and Kisame," Sasori muttered, bored. "Let's try to finish this mission without any more interruptions." He turned his head to glare at Hidan but was met with the sight of a cane before it was swung into his face. His head bent back and although he didn't feel any pain because well, he couldn't, the fact that the elder had hit him and that Deidara and Hidan were laughing irritated him.

"Such rude youth these days!" the old lady spoke, continuously striking Sasori's legs with her cane and obviously mistaking him for the fifteen year old age he looked. "I think I'll teach you all a lesson!" She paused in her striking to reach into her robes, pulling out a small round object before throwing it on the ground between them and taking off back into the bushes.

Before anyone could react, there was an explosion and pink smoke spread around the area, thoroughly blinding the four S-ranked criminals and trapping them.

Back in the center of the village, Kisame and Itachi had taken down the very last of the village's shinobi, effectively completing their mission. "Let's go see about the others." Itachi jumped down from the rooftop he and Kisame were positioned on, running toward where he had seen Deidara go down.

The two made it to the spot in no time and slowed to a stop. There was a strange smell in the air, and they could see the faint traces of a smoke disappearing into the woods around them. "Deidara?" the Uchiha called out, figuring it was from one of his bombs detonating.

"We have a little problem." Sasori had stepped out from behind a bush after recognizing that it was just Itachi and Kisame standing there and not more shinobi. He'd pulled the bush aside and revealed what exactly the problem was.

It was definitely a _little_ problem.

 _This should have been such a flawless mission_ , Itachi thinks again, as he stares at the sleeping mass of children lying in front of him and his partner. A sleeping mass of _Akatsuki members_ turned children. They're hardly recognizable, not looking anything like their older counterparts, but Itachi knows it's them because he can't imagine children with the same hair colors as their comrades would just so happen be taking a nap in the middle of the woods during disaster. Not to mention the fact that the children are bathed in over-sized Akatsuki cloaks.

"This is…bad," Kisame murmurs beside him, poking a toe at the one he knows is Hidan. He turns to Sasori. "What happened?"

The red head scowls before answering. "Some old lady threw some sort of gas at us. They must have breathed it in." Itachi guesses it didn't affect Sasori because he's a puppet.

Hearing yells from the village growing closer, Itachi sighs. "We need to get out of here." He bends down and scoops up Hidan, holding him under his arm and jumping up into a tree, giving a glance at his two other comrades. Sasori kneels down and grabs Deidara's arm, pulling it around his neck and standing. Kisame groans before throwing Kakuzu over his shoulders and following the two deep into the woods and out of the small village.

 _At least the mission was technically a success_ , Itachi thinks as he wonders how they're going to tell Leader about this.


	2. Chapter 2

They stop in the next village over. They aren't worried about the citizens that gave chase from the last village because that's all they are – citizens. All the shinobi (there were very few to begin with) are dead now, just as their mission detailed.

"It's getting dark," Kisame comments as they walk along the outskirts of this new village. Itachi nods, looking toward the horizon. The sun will be down in a matter of minutes, and they need to figure out what the hell they're going to do about this. The raven sets the small frame of Hidan down onto the ground.

"I'll find an inn to stay at and come get you so we can sneak them in." Kisame and Sasori agree, setting down their two dead weights. Itachi disappears into the village, coming back fifteen minutes later with a key to a room. They pick up their comrades again and quickly slip through the quiet town and into their inn room. Kisame locks the door behind them and turns to look at the room. It's a small room with only two beds, what he and Itachi normally get, but with the added three children and Sasori, it'll be a tight squeeze. "She gave me a funny look when I asked for two beds, I didn't want to make her even more suspicious by asking for a family-sized room," Itachi explains when he sees his partner's expression.

"I'm not complaining," Kisame chuckles, tossing Kakuzu onto one of the beds as if he were a sack of potatoes.

"Kisame," Itachi scolds, laying Hidan down next to the immortal duo. Sasori dumps Deidara next to them. "We need to get them back to the hideout as soon as possible."

"Without being seen," the blue-skinned man adds. Itachi silently agrees. Although the Akatsuki aren't very well known yet, there are still shinobi and others out there who want them dead, and in Deidara, Hidan, and Kakuzu's vulnerable states, it would be easy to take them out. "Maybe we should get them some clothes?"

"I agree." It _would_ look very strange to be walking around with children all dressed the same as them, and even more strange if they were half-naked. "I saw a clothing shop nearby when I was looking for this inn; we'll leave early in the morning and stop by there before we head to the hideout."

"Alright." Sasori nods and steps outside the room, muttering that he's going to make sure no one followed them.

Kisame sets Samehada down beside the bed not inhabited by children and goes to the bathroom. The shower turns on a moment later, and Itachi lets himself relax onto the free bed, exhausted. They'd been getting missions one after the other lately, with little time to rest in between. This was the first time he'd been able to lie down in two days, and he was going to take advantage of it. The cheap lumpy mattress feels good under his aching muscles; he closes his eyes and lets himself fall asleep.

He doesn't know how long he's out, but it must not have been a long time because he can still hear the shower running. He also hears stirring coming from the bed across the room. He pulls himself into a sitting position and watches as Hidan shifts in his sleep, stretching his arms above his head and kicking his feet out over the edge of the bed. With a small yawn, the Jashinist sits up, blinking at Itachi in confusion.

And then he lets out the loudest scream Itachi has heard in his entire life. A loud banging sound comes from the bathroom, but the Uchiha ignores it, crossing the room in two steps and picking up the screaming child. "Hidan, stop!" The other two are waking up now, and their reactions, while not as extreme as Hidan's, aren't much better.

"Let me go!" Hidan screams, kicking Itachi continuously, and flailing his arms out.

"Hidan, stop, you're alright! I'm not going to hurt you!" Itachi is suddenly hit in the back of the head by a pillow, and though it doesn't hurt, he bites his tongue and blood immediately pools into his mouth and down his chin.

"Agh!" Deidara, the culprit, screams. "He spits red venom out, hm!"

"Deidara, I-" the raven's cut off by a punch to the back by Kakuzu. "Kisame!"

The bathroom door bangs open and the shark-nin exits in a panic, holding a towel around his waist. He takes one look at Itachi and bursts into laughter. "Can't handle a few kids, Itachi? Here I thought some shinobi were attacking."

"Just grab Deidara before he gets out," the Uchiha growls, jerking his head towards the door where the blond is trying to reach the latch to unlock it. "Hidan, please stop screaming!"

"Then let me go, you jerk face!" The silver-haired boy struggles out of the raven's grasp, landing on the floor with a thud. "And how do you know my name, anyway?"

"Don't worry about that," Itachi says, grabbing Kakuzu before he can punch him again. "Just sit down and remain calm and I'll explain every- Ow!" He drops Kakuzu onto the floor and pulled his hand to his chest. The little bastard bit him. Kisame crosses the room with a screaming Deidara hanging upside down by his foot.

"This is going well, isn't it?" Kisame smirks, and there's a knock at the door. "Oh dear."

"Put them in the bathroom. I'll get the door." Itachi stands up and rushes to the door while Kisame jumps into action. "Hello?"

He opens the door a crack, eyes meeting with the owner of the inn. "I'm getting complaints of multiple children screaming from this room, and when I checked the records, this room and only been reserved for one person!"

"I'm…terribly sorry, ma'am," Itachi apologizes, formulating some lies in his head. "I'm just visiting this village with my kids; I thought they stayed free so I didn't even think to mention them when I checked in."

The grumpy look doesn't change on the woman. "Well, they don't stay free here, you'll have to upgrade to the family-sized room if you don't want me to have the police show up."

"Oh, of course, ma'am, I'll upgrade right away."

"Good." The woman's face softens a bit, and she takes out a notepad. "How many kids are in the room with you?"

"Uh, three."

Her eyebrows raise as she scribbles away on her notepad. "Busy guy, you are. You don't look much older than twenty, either." Itachi just stands there nervously. Yells can be heard coming from the bathroom and the woman looks up again. "You need to keep those kids under control."

"Sorry, they…really hate bath-time."

"Itachi," Kisame opens the door to the bathroom slightly and yells out. "Is that Sasori?"

"Just a minute," the raven hisses, turning back to the less-than-please woman. "I forgot to mention there's two more adults as well."

"Sure you did." She finishes her calculations and tells the price to Itachi, who sighs as he takes the money out of his own earnings. "Come down to the front desk to receive your new key and please, keep the kids out of my lobby. I don't need them making a ruckus and scaring away any other guests."

He closes the door and sighs, leaning against it and staring toward the bathroom as Deidara peeks his head out. It's obvious that none of them remember that they're S-ranked criminals belonging to the Akatsuki organization. And they certainly don't remember Itachi or Kisame, or each other for that matter.

"We need to change rooms, Kisame," Itachi says, rubbing his temples. Kisame exits the bathroom and the three kids with him spill out, running in all directions.

"At least the next room will be bigger," Kisame says, crossing the room and grabbing Samehada before Hidan can get his hands on it. "You go grab the key, I'll stay and make sure they don't get us into any more trouble."

Itachi nods, standing up from the floor and doing just that. When he comes back up, he and his partner quickly usher the still-struggling and confused kids into their new room, which is bigger than the last, but still just as cheap and dirty-looking.

"Okay, everyone sit down on that bed and I'll explain what's going on."

"Are you guys kidnappers? Hm." Deidara asks, hopping up onto the bed and swinging his legs, not as panicked as any normal kid would be. Kakuzu rolls his eyes and glares at the two adults in the room, still standing. Itachi and Kisame can barely recognize him; he's still got his long brown hair, and his eyes are the same, but there are no stitches anywhere on his body, and it's odd to see him without his mask. He's the tallest out of the rest of the kids, and stands at his full height in some attempt to threaten the two older members.

Deidara looks very much the same; his long blond hair is fully down, the ribbon he usually keeps in it must have fallen out during the skirmish. He still has the same mischievous look in his eyes, which are even more clear to see since it appears he lost his scope as well. A quick glance at his hands confirms that the mouths are still there as well.

"What makes you think they'd tell us if they were kidnappers, stupid?" Hidan snaps, crossing his arms and sitting down on the floor in a huff. He's pretty much the same as well. His silver hair is a little shorter than before, but his face appears the same – not innocent at all. Itachi had never really pegged Hidan to have an innocent bone in his body anyways.

"We're not kidnappers," the Uchiha explains. "We're part of the Akatsuki, and so are all of you."

"What's the 'Katsi?" Deidara asks, leaning forward. "Is it a kidnappers' club?"

Kisame face-palms. "The _Akatsuki_ is a group of mercenaries-for-hire."

"What's that?" Hidan asks, though he doesn't really appear too interested. He plays with a loose thread on his cloak. "Is that why we're all matching?"

"I've heard about mercenaries," Kakuzu says, ignoring is partner's words. "They kill people for money. That's what I'm gonna be when I grow up."

"Anyways," Itachi continues. "You're all a part of the Akatsuki, we were on a mission and then-"

"Does that mean we get to kill people?!" Hidan jumps up and kicks as high as he can, showing off his skills. He turns to Deidara. "Maybe being kidnapped isn't so bad if we get to kill people."

"You weren't kidnapped!" Itachi rubs his temples. Kisame puts a hand on his shoulder, chuckling.

"Just forget it, Itachi, as long as they aren't screaming anymore who cares what they believe?" Kisame turns toward the three. "How old are you all?"

"Five!" they shout simultaneously, looking at each other and bursting into laughter afterward. Itachi and Kisame fail to see what's so funny, but they ignore it. They're a lot younger than Itachi had initially thought. Not even old enough to start Academy.

Itachi stands, motioning for his comrades to do the same. "We have a lot to do tomorrow, so it's best we get some sleep now." The protests that follow his words catch him off guard.

"I'm not even tired, hm!"

"We just woke up."

"My bedtime's not until nine thirty."

Itachi closes his eyes, considering using a genjutsu on the brats. What Kisame says next stops him from actually doing so. "If you don't go to bed, Samehada's going to eat you."

"Samehada?" Hidan scowls. "What's that?"

"My sword." Kisame hefts it up over his head. "His favorite thing to snack on is little boys, especially after dark."

There's a split second where the former Akatsuki members stare at the huge sword, and then they all scream and scramble into the bed, hiding under the covers. Itachi rolls his eyes as he watches them fight over the covers.

"This is going to be fun," Kisame grins, resting Samehada over his shoulder. Itachi can't seem to agree.


	3. Chapter 3

Itachi had thought he was going to get a decent night sleep, but like the rest of his life, things certainly don't go his way. He'd saved the third bed for Sasori, sure that the puppet would be able to figure out they'd changed rooms, and so he'd been forced to sleep with Kisame. Which isn't all that bad, but the shark-nin rolls over a _lot_ and the Uchiha would rather not be punched in the face during the night.

As well as having to share a bed with a man who takes up over half of it, his other comrades had refused to shut the hell up and just sleep. Deidara and Hidan had been the worst, and Itachi makes a vow to get back at them once they've returned to their normal age and state of mind. Kakuzu had fallen asleep first, and the raven decides that the miser is his favorite for now.

Hidan and Deidara seemed to have a competition going on as to who can make the most noise, and it had taken multiple death threats from both Itachi and Kisame for the two to finally shut up and lie still.

The night had gone by too fast, and the sun is peeking through the curtains just a few hours later. Itachi sits up, thankful that at least Kisame hasn't crushed him during the night. Sasori gives him a nod from where he's sitting on his bed. Itachi nods back and slips into the bathroom and takes a long shower to clear his mind and think about the day's plans. They need to get civilian clothes for the three idiots who managed to get themselves turned into children, and they need to get out of this village. By now the news of the attacks yesterday should be getting around to the nearby villages, and if any descriptions of the Akatsuki got out while almost half of them were vulnerable like this, things could get bad.

He shuts the water off and wraps a towel around his waist. Two seconds later Deidara bursts through the door. "Out, out, out!" he yells, shoving at Itachi. "I need to go bathroom!"

"Do you mind?" Itachi asks, pushing the little blond back out the door. "You can't just barge in like that, you need to wait your-"

Deidara lets out a high-pitched scream of frustration, effectively cutting off whatever Itachi was going to say next.

"Fine," the raven concedes, stepping around the kid and leaving the bathroom. "Don't take too long in there." Kisame, who has since woken up, laughs from the bed.

"You're just going to let him kick you out like that?"

"I'd rather not have that old woman come and complain again," Itachi explains, crossing his arms over his chest as he waits outside the bathroom door. He watches as Hidan stirs on his bed and prays he doesn't wake up just yet. He's not in the mood to deal with any more of their antics this early in the morning.

The bathroom door opens and Deidara bounces out, immediately running and jumping onto his bed, effectively waking up Hidan and Kakuzu with a jolt. Itachi slips into the bathroom before anyone else can steal it from his again. He gets dressed and fixes his hair, lingering in the small room for a while as he hears everyone get up.

He listens as Kisame attempts to scare the affected members into listening with his sword again, and he chuckles when he hears that it doesn't work anymore. He finally steps outside the bathroom, taking in the nightmare he's going to be forced to deal with. He quickly strategizes a plan.

"Kisame, you're in charge of Kakuzu," Itachi explains. Kisame looks relieved. "I'll take Hidan, and Sasori, will you take Deidara, since you are partners after all?"

"Hn. Yeah, I guess."

"We're partners?!" Deidara shouts, jumping off the bed and running in circles around an irritated Sasori. Hidan narrows his eyes at Itachi, looking him up and down.

"Just so you know, I don't take orders from nobody!" the silver-haired child says.

Itachi raises an eyebrow, deciding to figure something out. "Not even Jashin?" Hidan frowns in confusion.

"Who's Jashin?" He shrugs. "Whoever he is, I don't take orders from him either!" Itachi chuckles slightly, glancing at Kakuzu. If he were in his right state of mind, the miser would probably be smiling. Since he's not, however, he just looks confused.

"So they're not immortal anymore, either," Sasori says, motioning to the immortal duo.

"Oh yeah, I hadn't thought of that." Kisame glances down at Kakuzu, who glares back up at him.

"Anyway, let's get going, we're running late enough already," Itachi says, and they exit the room. The Uchiha drops the key off to the old lady at the front, who gives the kids an evil look, before they head out on their way to get some normal clothing.

Immediately after stepping outside of the inn, Kakuzu takes off running. The five remaining stare after him for two seconds before Kisame groans and chases after him. Itachi sighs, leaning down and grabbing Hidan's hand before the former Jashinist gets any ideas. Sasori turns toward Deidara to do the same, but the blond scowls and puts his hands behind his back.

"Brat," Sasori warns, trying to snake an arm around the kid. Deidara takes a step back and laughs, suddenly moving both his hands in front of him, the palm mouths open, tongues sticking out.

"You can't grab my hands unless you wanna be licked, hm!" Sasori drops his arms to his sides, staring at the blond like he just grew a second head.

"You disgust me," the puppet says, earning another laugh from Deidara. "Just stay close, brat."

"Okay, hm!"

Itachi sees Samehada over the sea of people's heads and sighs in relief. It's short-lived, however, as when Kisame finally meets with them again, he's empty-handed. "I lost him."

"You what?!" Sasori and Itachi both shout, earning a few glares from nearby townspeople.

"He slipped into a shop and when I followed him in there, he was just…gone," Kisame sighs, rubbing his neck. "I checked around the other shops nearby as well, but he was nowhere."

"Let's split up," Itachi says, tightening his grip on Hidan's hand. "He can't have gotten too far." He turns to start walking but stops after a few steps when he sees Kakuzu casually coming back toward the group, an obviously stolen wallet clutched in his hands.

"There you are," Kisame growls, immediately beside the miser. "You ditched us to steal some money?"

"It's mine!" Kakuzu yells when the shark-nin reaches for the wallet. He shoves it into his over-sized cloak and glares up at Kisame. "If you try to take it, I'll run away again."

Kisame throws his hands up in defeat. "Fine, fine, you can have it, just stay with the group." With that said and agreed upon, the six head for the clothing store Itachi had seen the night before.

"They all look about the same size," Itachi says once they're standing outside the shop. "Kisame, just go in and grab the cheapest clothes you can find." They've already gotten several confused looks from the villagers at the children's states of dress, and even Sasori seems slightly worried about being recognized, especially with Hiruko broken.

Kisame drags Kakuzu inside the store, going to the back of the store and grabbing some worn and used clothing that seems like it'll fit the young miser. He doesn't bother asking Kakuzu to try any of it on, because he knows it will just be another opportunity for the brunet to run off or make a scene. He buys the clothes with his own money, muttering under his breath as the shop owner hands him back his change.

"Here," he says once they've met the other behind the shop, reaching into the bag and tossing the new purchases to Itachi and Sasori.

"I'm not wearing that, hm," Deidara says immediately after seeing the ugly yellow, half fish-netted shirt in Sasori's hands. "That's hideous."

"You're five," Sasori says in explanation. "You don't know what hideous is." Though he does shoot Kisame a questioning look in regard to his poor choice of clothing.

"Itachi said to get the cheapest thing, that was the cheapest thing," he blue-skinned man growls out, attempting to pull an equally hideous dirt brown shirt over Kakuzu's head. The only one who doesn't seem to mind the color of his shirt is Hidan, who undresses quickly and pulls the grey sleeveless top on willingly before stepping into the black shorts he's given. Itachi takes his cloak and folds it up, tucking it under his arm, grateful that his charge, for once, is being cooperative.

The other two reluctantly get dressed, all wearing black shorts and shirts that match their hair color. Kisame swears it's a coincidence, and no one cares enough to question him. Sasori looks up at sun, which is directly above them. "We're wasting too much time," he growls. "We won't make it to the hideout before nightfall."

"Let's get out of here, then," Kisame says, throwing Kakuzu's Akatsuki cloak over Samehada.

Itachi nods and kneels down. "Get on my back, Hidan."

"No way!" the light-haired boy argues, backing away from the Uchiha. "I'll walk, thanks."

"It'll be faster if you just get on my back," Itachi argues back, reaching a hand out and grabbing Hidan's arm. "We don't have time to waste."

"What's in it for me?" Hidan digs his feet into the ground. "You can't just kidnap people and expect them to do what you want."

"For the last time, you're not being kidnapped!" Itachi sighs. "You're a part of the Akatsuki, if you just cooperate, we'll take you back to our hideout and we'll explain everything better there."

"A hideout? Like a secret clubhouse?"

"Sure," Itachi says dryly. Hidan stands stubbornly for a few second more before climbing onto Itachi's back.

"Well, alright."

Deidara jumps onto Sasori's back without the red head even having to tell him. "Hey, what are these hard things on your back?" Deidara complains, poking the back of Sasori's head. The puppet huffs.

"My blades and the place I keep my scrolls."

"Why do you-"

"I'm a puppet."

Deidara goes silent, thinking, then he whispers, "I knew it." Sasori rolls his eyes and watches as Kisame argues with Kakuzu.

"We'll be faster if you let me carry you," the shark-nin explains. When it's obvious that Kakuzu isn't going to budge, he comes up with another idea, taking some money out of his cloak. "I'll give you this coin if you agree to-"

"Okay." Kisame blinks.

"Well, that was easy." Itachi glances around briefly to make sure everyone's ready before turning and starting to run, the other members quick behind him. They're out of the village in no time at all, only getting a few glances from the townsfolk as they leave.

Itachi shifts Hidan's weight as he jumps from tree to tree, staring ahead and thinking about how they're going to explain this to the Leader, and more importantly, how they're going to fix this situation. He glances back at Sasori, who has a permanent irritated scowl on his face as he listens to Deidara's nonstop chatter. The raven makes a note to get more information out of the ex Suna-nin when they get back to the base. Until then, it's going to be a long day.


End file.
